'Demon Hunter: Time 2 Kill' release issue and wrong year

ljdoncel: I deleted my comment above because I hadn't been aware of those screenings. In fact, it looks like both of them should count.

The film played at film festivals while it was still a work in progress state. We were still in post production right up until January 2026. The VFX took that long.

We are about to close a distribution deal for a 2026 release and it is just unfair to have it say ‘released 2025’ and allow people to rate a film that currently is not released or distributed.

The festivals screened an unfinished work-in-progress cut of the film. 

Zoe: I don't see any indication that either of these festivals promoted the film as a "work in progress":

https://ifi.ie/film/horrorthon-2024-demon-hunter-time-2-kill/

https://bihf.co.uk/event/tammy-and-the-t-rex-demon-hunter-time-2-kill-the-comedy-of-horror/

A film cannot be declared a work in progress retroactively. See the discussion at https://community-imdb.sprinklr.com/conversations/data-issues-policy-discussions/what-is-the-policy-on-works-in-progress/6489121296ec7c631b014368 where IMDb staffer Michelle wrote, "Yes, to confirm, 'work in progress' are exceedingly rare and to be eligible for this attribute, this needs to be explicitly advertised/promoted as such ahead of the screening.  Additionally, any screening that is advertised as a 'premiere' or 'world premiere' and/or where the film is nominated or wins awards is not eligible to be listed as a 'work in progress' screening." (Emphasis added.)

You would have to show that both of these festivals promoted the film as a work in progress for the film to have (2026) as the year in parentheses after the title.

Edited to add: The film was also shown in 2025 at the Bay of Blood International Film Festival:

https://www.bayofblood.ca/2025-features/demon-hunter-time-2-kill and https://www.bayofblood.ca/schedule

and the Light Till Dark Fantastic Film Festival:

https://www.lighttilldark.com/demon-hunter-time-2-kill

Neither of those festivals appears to have promoted the film as a work in progress, either.

Please dont list the film as 2024 as this is going to damage us regarding marketing and distirbution.

The screening at IFI horrorthon was a work-in-progress screening.

We filmed reshoots in 2025.

If you notice the run time was 111 mins at horrorthon the film is now 97 mins.

The screening at horrorthon was 14 mins longer and didnt have finished cgi or the licensed songs on the soundtrack.

 The other issue here is, this film is not released and you have put it down as released.

 If you go to my instagram (https://www.instagram.com/zoekavanaghfilm?igsh=aXA2ZTdxNmhtcHZl&utm_source=qr) or the films facebook you will see we were still licensing songs onto the soundtrack as of December 2025.

Why would you do this? The screening at horrorthon was not a finished film.

You can see by the run time. The film hasn’t been released because of post-production took up to January 2026.

@zoe_kavanagh​ - Hi,

We list release dates based on the first screening of the film which includes festival screenings, we consider festivals to be an official release. If the title was pre-screen at this festival, we will need to retain these release date information associated as it indicates the title's original release per our policies.

Based on the documentation above, it has been determined that this title released with this date therefore, considered to be the first official release date for the film by IMDb. For that reason, this information should not be removed or modified, in accordance with our release date policies and guidelines.

You will still be welcome to add the other release dates (ie. 2026) with the respective attribute. 

Thank you for your understanding. 

1. Official Labeling: The film is labeled as Special Advanced Preview https://ifi.ie/film/horrorthon-2024-demon-hunter-time-2-kill/
2. Production Status: The film did not complete post-production until January 2026. Screenings before this date were test cuts.
3. Head Stuff review: There is a review that indicates this was a rough cut of the film: https://headstuff.org/entertainment/film/demon-hunter-time-2-kill-movie-review/

“The ambitious green screening (though this was a rough cut)”

https://headstuff.org/entertainment/film/demon-hunter-time-2-kill-movie-review/

For authenticity, the film has a 2025 copyright on the end credits.The 2024 Advanced preview screening was for feedback.The film was not released in 2024. We spent a year in post-production after that screening and we filmed more scenes.The film is not commercially released yet.

Obscura Filmfest Berlin listed their screening on 26 October 2024 as a "work in progress preview". This at least suggests that the 28 October "advanced preview screening" screening in Ireland was the same.

https://www.obscurafilmfest.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Obscura-B8-2024.pdf

Hello All,

Thank you for the evidence and supporting links! We are investigating and once we have further information, we'll post it below. 

Hi Fran,

I just wanted to clarify one detail that both the Obscura Filmfest Berlin screening (26 Oct 2024) and the IFI Horrorthon screening (28 Oct 2024) were the same work-in-progress cut shown that weekend from the same DCP file.

The Obscura screening is explicitly listed as a “work-in-progress preview,” which reflects the status of the version exhibited at that time.